Ahoy there mateys, Rare set sail on Inside Xbox to detail the April update to Sea of Thieves. Ships of Fortune has you joining a trading company as an emissary, join an existing one, or the new one Reaper’s Bones. One of the new features that I like is that your crew will now have the chance to revive you, but only for a limited time, before your soul is claimed by Davy Jones.

A new and mysterious Company known as The Reaper’s Bones, teased throughout our previous monthly updates, has emerged! Keeping your fancy Emissary status with the Reaper’s Bones around won’t be so easy, as their own Emissaries have but one duty – to lay their rivals low and take their Emissary Flags as trophies! Of course, taking their loot is a close-running second priority.

The new Company can be found at The Reaper’s Hideout, where they seem to encourage their ideals of ‘true piracy’ without the need for honour among thieves. For the Reapers, following your passion and having the will to come out on top is what being ‘a pirate for all eternity’ really means. If you choose to become an Emissary for a Company other than theirs, expect no quarter from these merciless miscreants.

Players excited at the thought of some competitive action should also check out overhauled matches in our dedicated Arena mode. Old treasure maps have been replaced by a single chest marked by a Sea Dog Beacon, with just one cash-in location to ensure a furious battle for victory! Contest times have also been slashed to 15 minutes, guaranteeing a frantic pace in each match.

Whether your battles take place in Adventure or Arena, we’re also adding a new way for crews to look out for each other on the seas. Now, when pirates are defeated, there will be a brief window during which their crewmates can revive them before their soul drifts to the Ferry of the Damned. This should allow for quicker gameplay loops as well as some new tactical choices for co-operative crews.

For all the details, hit up the Xbox Wire and see you on the seas.